Um... I changed my oil 4,000mi ago and when I changed it about 2 min ago only about 1 1/2 qts of oil drained out.... Cobb stg 2, 40k mi. No catch can or cel's. No smoke, no puddles.

did you check how much oil was in it prior to draining?
you should check your oil whenever you fuel up, especially if you are running a modded car.

Shandra had her car serviced and it turned out they shorted a whole quart of oil.

i dont know what else to tell you... is your car at a really funny angle right now???
i have no idea unless your car is really eating it, or you did notput enough in in the first place.

that's no good, check the comp for sure

I checkd it to make sure it was really empty after draining and the stick read empty. It's sitting flat, and I put 5 qts in it when I changed it the last time.

Comp?

O comp ratios. Gotcha. Boost gauge reads 20in of vacume at idle with a/c on.

comp. means check your compression if it is low you may need a rebuild or do a swap of sorts, but 1.5 quarts of oil is way low so somethin is up. :(

I'm thinkin he means check the compression in the cylinders, not vaccum but that is just my guess.

well from the basic knoledge(sp?) I have about engines a low vaccume means your compression will be messed up. Or bad idle, miss ect. But I'll do one for peace of mind. Some one correct me if I'm wrong.

so let me get this straight....

you have a modified TURBO car, and ran for 4000 miles without checking the oil. Then you drained the oil and only 1.5 quarts came out?

All this time, no oil pressure lights? engine continued running fine?

yikes!

All this time, no oil pressure lights? engine continued running fine?

yikes!

The factory oil light is worthless. I always check my oil at least once a week.

Yep, everything works fine. Even ran a 13.80 two weeks ago. But now I'm always going to check my oil with every tank of gas.

The factory oil light is worthless. I always check my oil at least once a week.

you will note that I do not rely on the oil pressure light :)

I check mine about like you but more right after the change in case of a leak.

I am just very impressed the engine could run with this low of levels. The oil pressure must have stayed up to at least some reasonable level to keep the light off and the car running. With 1.5 quarts...wow

could the oil be sneekaly hiding out in the engine somewhere?

It really doesn't have to be at some reasonable level, the stock oil pressure idiot light goes on at around 2psi. Just to let you know that it's time to call a mechanic.

Or to late to call a mechanic.

I had the same issue a while ago. I drained out about 1.5qts as well. I had low compression in cylinder 3. I would bet you have bad compression in a cylinder and need to fix it or do a swap....

Thanks Javier...

I check my oil every 3-4 days.

did you happen to be using mobile one sythetic?

Actually yes. I switched to mobil 1 the last oil change.

That will happen when you`re using Mobil 1 synth. cause its very thin compared to other synths. 5-30 I bet too.

That will happen when you`re using Mobil 1 synth. cause its very thin compared to other synths. 5-30 I bet too.
Oil consumption goes up when using synthetic? Proof?

I think the theory is that since Mobil1 is so much less viscous than dino oil at room temp, it can leak into the combustion chamber more at a cold start until the rings warm up and expand to seal better.

That's crazy man. I check my oil about 2-3 times a week. I can tell when my car gets a little low on oil. It has a hard time starting. If ever my car doesn't start to turn over like normal I quickly switch it off and check my oil. My car doesn't like to lose even a half a quart. It starts to act pissy even then. I could not imagine only running around on a quart and a half. My car probably wouldn't even turn over. Mine's an '05 though. Dunno if that matters.

I check my oil at least once a week. I can hear differences in the engine when its a little low. Also i use Mobil 1, in a typical 3k oil change i loose almost exactly a quart. In the winter less. I think it's because i drive it harder in the summer. I also lost the same amout of oil when i ran dino oil too. I changed after about 9k and now I am at 26k and ready to do another change. BTW, anyone who deos not check thier oil regularly is asking for trouble.

That will happen when you`re using Mobil 1 synth. cause its very thin compared to other synths. 5-30 I bet too.

While the 5w30 is thinner than most, it wouldn't explain the loss he is talking about - I have been running Mobil-1 since 6k miles and with the 5w30 I loose around half a quart or so every 3k miles - with the 10w30, don't loose any appreciable quantity.

Oil consumption goes up when using synthetic? Proof?
You want proof? Use M1 5-30 for a month and become a believer. You cant drive it like a nanny either, or else you wont lose any at all. The consumption I see is only when you push your car.

While the 5w30 is thinner than most, it wouldn't explain the loss he is talking about - I have been running Mobil-1 since 6k miles and with the 5w30 I loose around half a quart or so every 3k miles - with the 10w30, don't loose any appreciable quantity. It all depends on how he drives it. The harder you drive it the more youre gonna lose. When I push it really really hard I can actually see M1 burning behind me.

There's plenty of proof in used oil analysis' that shows M1 5W30 shears down. Shearing down and using/losing 3.5 quarts is another story!

You definitely should be checking your oil once a week, especially on a modded car. I'm sorry put your driving privileges have been suspended. Park your car and don't drive for 6 months!

-Dennis

The proof is in my post. There is mechanicly nothing wrong with my car. Equal comp ratios on all 4. Never lost any oil with dino. Lost alot with syntec. And I do drive it hard. So there you go, the proof is not in the engine. :D

so what were the compression test results for each cylinder?

(also - if you actually see oil burning behind your car, you likely have a problem - even if you drive it hard)

The proof is in my post. There is mechanicly nothing wrong with my car. ... So there you go, the proof is not in the engine. :D
Did you do extensive diagnosis or a teardown since the mystery oil loss that you haven't told us about yet?

so what were the compression test results for each cylinder?

(also - if you actually see oil burning behind your car, you likely have a problem - even if you drive it hard)
I believe if you go WOT any WRX I`ve seen has smoke behind them and no it doesnt mean something is wrong with the car. I think the A/F ratios richen up at WOT. I`ve had the somke thing in my car bone stock from the factory.

I believe if you go WOT any WRX I`ve seen has smoke behind them and no it doesnt mean something is wrong with the car. I think the A/F ratios richen up at WOT. I`ve had the somke thing in my car bone stock from the factory.

a puff of black smoke from running rich (very common in performance-oriented cars when you stomp on the gas) is different than blue smoke from burning oil.

Maybe you were just really drunk when you changed your oil. 1 and a half quarts, 5 quarts who's counting. Grab me another beer!!!!

I don't remember the results. I have seen "smoke" behind my car only under heavy acceleration. All it is, is fuel. No blue smoke. Just a smelly gassy fog from all the performance.

I'm losing oil too. I don't see any leaks, so I'm thinking it's burning. How is a compression test done, and roughly how much does it cost?

Thanks!

The factory oil pressure idiot light goes off at 3 (yes, three) psi. The engine is already damaged if that light goes off.


Brian

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You want proof? Use M1 5-30 for a month and become a believer. You cant drive it like a nanny either, or else you wont lose any at all. The consumption I see is only when you push your car.

M1 user for the last 60k. No oil consumpion. I'm not a nanny.

I'm losing oil too. I don't see any leaks, so I'm thinking it's burning. How is a compression test done, and roughly how much does it cost?

Thanks!
A compression test is done by removing all spark plugs and treading in a pressure gauge. Disconnect the fuel supply (relay) and crank the engine. You can watch the pressure build on the guauge. Take the reading when it stops rising after 3 or 4 cranks.

Its not that hard on an inline four, but its a bit of a pain on the H4. A shop will usually charge about an hour of labor ($60-100) for a compression test. All tools to do the job should cost less than $30. Plan on two hours if you're not mechanicly inclined and haven't changed plugs on a DOHC Subaru before.

Pete

M1 user for the last 60k. No oil consumpion. I'm not a nanny.
Than you must have a special engine cause almost all M1 users burn oil, or what I`ve seen in posts around here.